


Getting Lost is Part of The Journey

by Kiryon



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Angst with a Happy Ending, Burn Wounds, Fluff and Angst, Graphic Description of Corpses, Heavy Angst, M/M, MCD not Dean or Cas, Omega Castiel/Alpha Dean Winchester, Scarred Castiel (Supernatural), Sexual Content, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-05
Updated: 2019-07-28
Packaged: 2020-04-08 05:25:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19100596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiryon/pseuds/Kiryon
Summary: Emmanuel Harvelle is a simple man. Travelling across the land with his mother Ellen and his sister Joanna is the only life he’s ever known. He may have been kissed by fire, be an undesirable omega, but that doesn’t matter to him. He doesn’t need or even want an alpha. He’s happy right where he is. At least that’s what he tells himself at night when he wakes with tears in his eyes and fading dreams of green eyes that he can never quite hold on to.Dean Winchester is a prince set to inherit the crown to the great Kingdom of Huntalon. He’s an alpha, he’s wealthy, respected and envied. He’s also a broken, bitter man. He curses the gods every single day for giving him his mate so early in life only to rip him away so soon. His beautiful Castiel, with his gentle blue eyes and a smile that could light up the room. He would never take another for his mate. That was the promise he made on that rainy day when they brought in the charred, unrecognizable corpse of the youngest prince of Enoch. Castiel Novak would be his first and only love.





	1. Prologue - The War of Three Kingdoms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes about the world this is set in. Because I feel it gives a setting and some context. If you’d rather discover the world as the story progresses, feel free to skip this. 
> 
> The land:  
> There are three neighboring kingdoms on the same continent. Huntalon, ruled by the Winchesters, Enoch ruled by the Novaks and Pandora, originally ruled by the MacLeods 
> 
> * Was really racking my brain about what to call the Winchester’s kingdom. I asked myself, what do I know about the Winchester family. “Dad’s on a hunting trip and he hasn't been home in a few days” … and he went … alone… Badum tiss. (I’ll see myself out). It’s a terrible name. And I’m rolling with it.
> 
> Alphas, betas and omegas: 
> 
> There is no “presentation” in this universe. Secondary gender is known right from birth thanks to scents but an alpha or omega’s scent does alter after they’ve experienced their first rut or heat.
> 
> Ruts and heats don’t make people into mindless slaves to their needs. They remain functional and in control of themselves but do experience symptoms such as feeling warm, sweaty and horny. 
> 
> True mates do exist but the chances of them finding each other are extremely low. Most people will settle down with a mate they’ve fallen in love with or were arranged to mate with. Upon making contact with their true mate for the first time, an alpha’s eyes will glow red and an omega’s eyes will turn golden. Eyes may also change color of an alpha or omega finds themselves in an emotionally charged situation involving their mate. (ie: mating, birth of a child, death of a mate, life threatening situation) 
> 
> * There’s super cute lore behind that. Definitely gonna slip it somewhere into the story
> 
> Magic:
> 
> There is magic. Anyone can do it, but some people are naturally terrible at it and choose not to study it while some are naturally gifted and learn it easily.
> 
> Royalty and nobility:
> 
> Royals and high ranking noble families have a crest. A child born into one of those families will receive their family’s crest on their fifth birthday. The crest is like a tattoo on the left forearm of an individual. It is placed there using magic. It’s main purpose is to mark people as members of their respective bloodlines. Amongst other things ;) 
> 
> That’s the basics, not gonna get int too much detail cause finding out is also part of the fun. I just think this helps to not feel lost. I mostly wanted to clarify how the a/b/o element is gonna work in this since it can vary from fic to fic.

The War of Three Kingdoms. That was the name historians gave it once it was over. It happened almost three hundred years ago and left the continent ravaged. Originally, the Kingdoms of Enoch, Huntalon and Pandora were united under the rule of a common King. It was hailed as the largest Kingdom known to man. In hindsight, civil war should have been expected. How could a single man possibly rule over such an expansive territory. Pandora, to the north of the capital, was first to declare their independence. The lords of land rallied behind Lord MacLeod and led a rebellion against the Crown. With a war to fight to the north, the King demanded an increasing amount of resources from his remaining territories. A few years after the beginning of the rebellion and with no end in sight, Lord Winchester saw the misery of his people who barely had enough left to live on. On that day, he declared that Huntalon, the lands to the east of the capital, would now be independent from the Crown as well. Enraged by this development and without enough troops to fight a war on two sides, the King decreed that every beta and alpha males over the age of ten in his remaining lands would be conscripted into his armies. The people of Enoch, unwilling to see their children slaughtered, chose Lord Novak to represent them and negotiate with the King on their behalf. Lord Novak rode to the capital and begged the King to reconsider his orders. The King saw this as another act of rebellion against him and had the Lord executed. When news of their Lord’s demise reached the people of Enoch, they were outraged. Lord Novak’s son took his father’s place and declared that Enoch would never again bend the knee to an unworthy king.

With wars raging on three sides and troops stretched thin, the Crown could hold no land or stronghold. Soon, only the capital remained in the King’s control. With the war all but won, the new kings of the three Kingdoms agreed to have peace between them and arranged a meeting to decide how to best handle the situation at the capital. MacLeod, the king of Pandora proposed that they all pull back their armies in a show of good faith and negotiate for the King’s surrender. The other two approved of this plan and it was eventually decided that following the King’s surrender, the capital would become neutral grounds where all three nations could interact and trade freely. 

Following the meeting, Enoch and Huntalon pulled their troops back and opened surrender negotiations with the Crown. Unbeknownst to kings Novak and Winchester, instead of pulling their armies back, Pandora troops betrayed the agreement and marched onto the capital. They took the city in a single night and slaughtered every man, woman and child of noble birth, no matter how new or ancient the name. Many great names were forever extinguished on that night and the event soon became known as the Devil’s Night. After taking the capital, the king of Pandora demanded that Enoch and Huntalon surrender to his rule or face the same fate as the nobles of the capital. Horrified by the actions of Pandora, Enoch and Huntalon entered an alliance and vowed to drive the devils out of the capital. It took almost three years, but together, they defeated the Pandorian army and reclaimed the capital. King MacLeod was executed for his crimes and his family removed from power. The commoners who survived the Devil’s Night were welcomed into Enoch and Huntalon and the capital was abandoned. It was deemed neutral grounds but was never used as a gathering place for trade and camaraderie. To this day, it sits abandoned where the borders converge. 

Over the centuries that have passed since The War of The Three Kingdoms, conflict has broken out with Pandora a few times, but Enoch and Huntalon have remained steadfast allies. One such conflict, the most recent one, was the Five Year War. Once more, Enoch and Huntalon united against Pandora and emerged victorious. The Five Year War left Pandora without a ruler and in a state of civil war. As for Enoch and Huntalon, a powerful friendship was forged on the battlefield between kings John Winchester and Charles Novak. When omega prince Castiel Novak arrived into the world kicking and screaming not a year later, it surprised no one when king John made the journey to Enoch with his wife and son to meet his new godson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my Chuck. I'm sorry. I have NO idea how this turned into a history lesson. That's not even what I had planned for the prologue. I'll just... roll with it. It's short, but it felt like the right place to end the prologue. (also its 4 am. Oops)
> 
> Also, english is not my first language so I'm very sorry for any mistakes. They're my own.


	2. His Name is Castiel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is! The official Chapter one of this story. This is what I had planned for the original prologue. Being an actual chapter though, it's a lot more fleshed out than it would have been as a prologue.
> 
> Not counting some very bad, very cringy fanfics written when I was like 14, this is my first published work so I'm a little nervous about sharing it. Any constructive criticism is more than welcome and feel free to point out any grammatical mistake I may have made. English isn't my first language so I can struggle with it at times.

The news came on a beautiful summer day. The town of Lawrence was bustling with the activity of merchants setting up their stalls in the central plaza or already shouting about the wonders that one might find amongst their wares. There were children running in and out of alleys, chasing each other or locked in courageous combat with deadly foes. The stakes were high, they _had_ to know whose wooden stick was mightiest. A group of omegas was gossiping next to a jewelry stand, pointing this or that trinket and telling the others, in no uncertain terms, that this or that alpha would be giving it to them as a courting gift before the end of the season. Indeed, the omegas of Huntalon tended to be bold and confident. They were never regarded as inferior and could train in the art of battle if they so desired. These days, they could even join the royal armies and fight for their king, something they could have never done in the old days. After the War of Three Kingdoms ended, all three nations developed their own laws and customs. It was difficult at first, men are resistant to change after all, but when the new generation came, one that never suffered under the rule of the One King, the Old Ways were abandoned. In Huntalon omegas could now be hunters and warriors. They were raised as an alpha’s equal and where the Old Ways would encourage alphas to fight each other for the right to mate an omega, some of the feistier Huntian omegas now believed that facing a prospective alpha in single combat was the most enticing form of courting. Across the plaza stood a group of alpha huntsmen, busy selling the labors of their early morning hunt to one of the food merchants and covertly ogling the omegas at the jewelry stand. With the usual hustle and bustle of the plaza keeping everyone occupied, no one paid attention to the Enochian courier as he rode trough the plaza and up the paved path leading to Winchester Castle.

The people inside the walls of the castle were much quieter, but no less busy than the people down in the plaza. Servants were efficiently carrying out their morning tasks of cleaning, cooking and changing sheets whilst making sure not to disturb the royal couple who had yet to emerge from their bedchamber.

 

* * *

 

John Winchester couldn’t hold back a smile as he watched his wife play with their two-year-old son on the bed. “You know love, we’re going to have to get him his own room eventually.” While his tone was stern, the indulgent smile on his face ruined any authority the statement may have carried.

Mary Winchester turned to her husband to offer him her best impersonation of a kicked puppy. “But John! He’s still so small.” She said as she hugged the giggling boy to her chest and rocked him from side to side. She then turned to her son and asked, “Aren’t you, Dean?”

Happy to have his mother’s full attention once more, the toddler exclaimed, “Yes, mama!” then wrapped his little arms around the queen’s neck and buried his face into the crook of her neck to smell that sweet, reassuring scent that always made him feel so safe.

With a sigh, the king approached the bed and leant over it to give his wife a chaste kiss. Raising a hand to caress her cheek, he pulled back and said, “He would be right across the hall, love.” With a mischievous smile and a raised eyebrow he then stated, “A few stolen moments in the middle of the day aren’t going to give him a sibling.”

Mary smacked her husband on the arm. “John!” she exclaimed as her laughing mate retreated to avoid further abuse. She glared at him and said, “he’s way too young to ear such things!”

Still laughing, the king bent over to ruffle little Dean’s hair. “Don’t worry love, he has no idea what I’m talking about” he said with a smile then, in a gentle mockery of Mary’s earlier involvement of Dean in their conversation, he added, “don’t you Dean?”

Beaming up at his father, the little boy exclaimed, “Yes, papa!” and extended an arm towards him in hopes that his father would pick him up and play with him too.

With a grin, the alpha put his hands beneath his son’s armpits and lifted him from his mother’s arms. He chuckled at the fact that his wife was trying to hold on to her angry façade despite the small smile betraying her. Raising Dean high up in the air, he asked, “What do you think little alpha? Do you want a little brother or sister?”

Screeching with delight and clapping his hands at being so high up, the little prince grinned and yelled, “Yes!”

The king lowered his arms and rested the boy on his hip before turning back to his wife to tell her that the voice of wisdom had spoken but was interrupted by a knock at the door. Frowning, he turned to the door and put their son back onto the bed with his wife before going to answer. Whatever it was, it must be of importance if the servants felt it couldn’t wait until the royal couple came down for breakfast. Opening the door revealed a nervous young beta. Out of instinct, the king placed himself in a way that shielded his wife and child from view and asked, “What is it?”

The servant looked up at the king and, despite his nerves, managed to keep his voice steady as he said, “I’m terribly sorry to disturb you so early my king, but a courier has just arrived from Enoch with a sealed letter from king Charles. He’s waiting in the throne room.”

Worried by the news, the king replied, “Did he say what this was about?”

Relieved that the king didn’t seem angry about the early disturbance, the servant replied, “No my king, but there were no guards with him.”

Put as ease by the news but still worried over the fact that the message was important enough to be magically sealed, the alpha king said, “Very well, I’ll be right down. You may leave.” He closed the door as the servant bowed and left then turned to his wife. “I’m sorry love but-“, the king started, but stopped mid sentence as his wife raised a hand.

“Go”, she told him. “I’ll join you as soon as our little one is changed and dressed.”

With a nod, the king left the room.

 

* * *

 

 

All heads turned when king John Winchester entered the room. As he made his way to his throne and sat himself on it, the alpha noted that his second, Bobby Singer, was already present. Good. If the courier was bringing news of a Pandorian attack, they would need to act quickly and beat them down before they could start yet another war. Turning his attention to the Enochian courier kneeling at the center of the room, the king gestured for the beta to come closer. Rising to his feet, the courier approached the king and bowed before placing the sealed scroll into the kings outstretched hand then backed away.

The king quietly inspected the seal, more out of habit than anything else since he knew that the seal had no doubt already been acknowledged by his court wizard. Satisfied with the authenticity of the wolf seal, symbol of his own family, the king took a breath and allowed his fingers to make contact with the wax. He felt warmth on his arm as both the wolf’s seal on the scroll and wolf crest on his left arm glowed briefly. A moment later, without any force being applied to it, the wax seal detached itself from the top of the scroll and the glow receded. Had someone not bearing the Winchester’s wolf crest attempted to open the scroll, the seal would have ignited, and the scroll would have been devoured by fire. Wordlessly, John unrolled the scroll to read its contents as nearly everyone in the room unconsciously held their breath, terrified at the prospect of war returning so soon.

_John, my friend_

_The situation at castle Novak has grown dire. I am sorry to trouble you, but I didn’t know who else to turn to. As I write to you I have not slept in three days. Indeed, the screaming and crying has been keeping the whole castle up and I am at the end of my rope._

‘Screaming and crying?’ what in the gods’ name is going on over there, he wondered as the worry he felt for his friend increased.

_Therefore, I must now ask that you ride for Novak castle with haste so that you may deal with your godson’s incessant screeching._

‘Wait, what?’, thought the king as he read the sentence a second time.

_Oh, did you think we were under siege? I’m sorry my friend, maybe I should have started my letter in the way my wife wanted me to. Allow me to start over. King Charles Novak and his wife Queen Rebecca Novak are proud to announce that on the fifth night of the seventh month, their third child, a very loud omega prince, was born. After everything we’ve been trough together in the last few years, I could ask for no better man to be my son’s godfather. I understand that you have your own kingdom to run and this is a lot to ask of you, but I was hoping you might be able to make it here for his Name Day. It is customary that the godparents be present for this event, but if you cannot make it I understand. Just make sure to let us know quickly. Between you and me, my wife has only called me ‘the king’ ever since she found out we’d have to call him ‘the baby’ until we could hold an official Name Day and it’s driving me crazy._

_Sincerely, Chuck._

By the time he reached the end of the letter, John was sporting a wide grin and shaking his head at his friend’s antics. He was taken out of his musings by a hand squeezing his shoulder and turned his head to find his wife standing next to him with the prince in her arms. “I take it it’s good news, dear?” She asked.

Taking their son from her, he handed her the letter and said, “It looks like I’ll be going on little trip.”

 

* * *

 

 

A little over a week after the Winchester delegation left the city of Lawrence and set off for Mael, the capital of Enoch, the high towers of Novak castle finally broke the horizon and John Winchester let out a sigh of relief. As comfortable as the carriage was, he would have much preferred to be out riding with his men rather than be sitting in the carriage with his wife who would glare at him whenever little Dean threw a tantrum. He _had_ told his wife that she and Dean could stay in Lawrence while he went out to Mael for the prince’s Name Day, however his wife seemed determined to not be separated from her husband again after barely seeing him during the Five Year War. It was her idea to bring their son along. After all, the royal carriage was comfortable enough and they had more than enough guards to protect them from any bandits they may encounter. What the royal couple forgot to take into consideration was that for a two-year-old, spending nine days in a carriage doing absolutely nothing interesting and not being allowed outside was basically the equivalent of an eternity in hell. And so, John Winchester endured nine days cooped up in a carriage with a screaming child and an angry omega. He very carefully avoided mentioning that bringing Dean along was her idea in the first place and that they could have left him in Bobby’s care along with the kingdom. He knew better than to antagonize his omega. After all, he did want to still be capable of fathering children once this trip was over. 

As they finally entered the city, the king of Huntalon opened the wooden windows of their carriage so that he and his wife could wave to the cheering citizens of Mael. It was, after all, the first time that king John and queen Mary visited the allied country since the end of the war and the heroic deeds accomplished by the man who fought alongside their king had not been forgotten by the people of Enoch. When they finally crossed the great bridge that separated the city from the castle, John silently thanked the gods that the journey was finally over. Thankfully, Mary had quickly gotten over her bad mood once they’d entered the city and little Dean had been so fascinated by the cheering people that even his own boredom had been completely forgotten as he cheered back at them from where he stood on his father’s lap.  

As the carriage came to a stop and the door was opened, Mary had to catch Dean around the waist before he could throw himself out of the carriage. In his excitement, he’d been more than prepared to jump off before a servant could place the helpful wooden steps and for such a small boy, it was quite the fall. Allowing her husband to leave the carriage first, Mary then followed with a squirming Dean in her arms. Unsurprisingly, king Charles and his wife, queen Rebecca, were waiting for them right outside with their sons in tow. Their oldest, Michael, stood ramrod straight beside his father. He was twelve years old and an alpha. Beside him stood Gabriel, his younger brother and an alpha as well. He was ten and unlike Michael, he made no effort to appear dignified, choosing instead to make silly hand signs behind his stiff brother’s head. In the queen’s arms was a small bundle of blankets with a tuft of black hair poking out and the very reason for the Winchester family’s presence. The omega prince, not even a month old. An omega prince who was currently screaming his tiny little head off.

With a startled laugh, John looked to his friend and said, “Well, you weren’t kidding Chuck! This one’s got a healthy set of lungs.” The king of Huntalon stepped forward to exchange a, very manly, brotherly hug with the other king.

The Novak king chuckled and pulled back, smiling tiredly at his friend. “He’s a handful but we love him” he said and then added, “We do hope he’ll consider letting us sleep trough the night sometime soon though.”

Wincing in sympathy, Mary adjusted Dean on her hip when he suddenly stopped squirming and said, “We know how you feel, this one here didn’t start sleeping full nights until he was almost eleven months old.” She looked down at Dean and startled a bit when she saw him single mindedly staring ahead. He was an inquisitive child and in a new place he would usually be looking everywhere, trying to take everything in. Looking up to see what had her son so entranced, her gaze landed upon the infant nestled in the Novak queen’s arms.

Having also noticed the toddler’s interest, queen Rebecca approached Mary and leant forward so Dean would have a better view of the baby’s face and said to the boy, “He certainly _is_ loud for one so small, isn’t he? Don’t worry, he’s not going to be crying _all_ the time.”

And as the two-year-old alpha’s green eyes met the omega infant’s blue ones something amazing happened. The smallest Novak immediately stopped crying and let out a delighted gurgle as he waved his tiny little arms around. Dean leant forward in his mother’s grasp, extending his hands forward as if he intended to take the baby into his arms. Before he could make contact though, queen Rebecca leant back and stared down at her child in wonder then back at Dean. “I think this one really likes you prince Dean!” she exclaimed.

Puzzled at the fact that the baby was pulled away from him, he frowned up at queen Rebecca and asked, “My baby?”

The four adults broke into laughter at that statement, but Gabriel took great offense to it and stopped pestering his brother long enough to declare, “He’s _not_ your baby, he’s _my_ brother!” Which, of course, only seemed to further amuse the two royal couples. As for Michael, he simply frowned at the laughing adults, trying to understand what was so funny about the child’s question.

Gathering himself first, John asked Rebecca, “So, Becky, when will his Name Day ceremony be?”

Smiling at the Winchester king, she replied, “We’ll be holding it this evening.” It was around lunch time now, so it left about six hours to prepare.

Frowning at his wife, Chuck said, “Becky, sweetheart, maybe we should do it tomorrow. Our guests have had a long journey and-“ Before he could finish his sentence, he was silenced by his wife’s glare.

“I _will_ speak my child’s name when I tuck him in tonight, _King._ He has already been in this world for two weeks, he _deserves_ a name. You may be satisfied calling our child baby, _king,_ but I am _not._ ” She said angrily as her husband raised his hands in a placating manner to try and calm his wife.   

Holding back a laugh, John cast his friend a pitying look and thought, ‘well, you weren’t kidding about _that_ either.’ Aloud, he said, “We’ll be happy to attend it today! You’re absolutely right Becky, your son deserves a name. I’m sorry you had to wait for us to get here.”

As Rebecca assured the Winchester king that she didn’t blame them at all for the delay, the group began walking towards the castle gate. With everyone focused on the conversation, no one seemed to notice the fact that while the two queens walked side by side, prince Dean never looked away from the blue eyes gazing back at him from where they were peeking atop the blanket.

 

* * *

 

 

He had no idea what was going on. All he knew was that there were a lot of adults and they were being very noisy. Usually, he would have been fascinated by it and been tempted to make some noise of his own, but he was on a mission. He needed to find his baby. After they walked through the big door, mama and papa took him to another room and he hadn’t seen the blue-eyed baby since then. Mama said he would be here though. She said it was a special day for him and that he was the reason Dean had to spend all that time in the wooden box drawn by horses. Maybe he should be angry about it, but it didn’t seem important anymore. He needed to find his baby. He didn’t know why it was so important that he find him, he just knew that it was. So as soon as mama got distracted by the other ladies, he slipped out of her grasp and sneakily crawled away beneath table on which all the yummy food was. He’d tried to take some before he made his escape, but mama said no one could eat yet. Why the adults would put food that they couldn’t eat on the table, Dean didn’t know. He didn’t really care, either. He needed to find his baby. 

As silence fell over the room, Dean stopped. Had they noticed his skillful escape? Soon, however, a man started talking. Not bothering to listen, the little alpha resumed his crawling, dodging the feet of the adults as he made his way towards the other side of the room. He had just barely managed to avoid the ugliest pair of purple shoes he had ever seen when he heard it, clear as a bell. His baby was crying again. At that moment Dean could have smacked himself. Of course, his baby wasn’t going to be under a table. Poking his head out from beneath the table cloth and looking towards the front of the room, he finally saw him. He was laid down on a large fuzzy pelt and had a white blanket with a bird on it over his lower body. His parents were kneeling on either side of him and behind him was an old man standing next to a golden stick with a large book on it. The man was saying things, but Dean didn’t pay attention to what was being said. As he was about to make a run for his baby, someone grabbed him and foiled his plan. Well, at least he could see him better now…

 

* * *

 

John frowned down at his squirming son. Once again, he seemed completely focused on the youngest Novak, who had thankfully stopped crying. Not willing to allow his son to ruin such an important ceremony, he bent his head and whispered, “Settle down Dean.” The command was issued with the barest hint of Alpha tone, and the boy immediately froze in his father’s arms.

The Winchester king turned his attention back to the ceremony and noticed that it was coming to an end. The priest had finished reciting the blessings and was opening the book resting on the golden stand. Queen Rebecca and king Charles shared a smile before leaning forward over their son and each placing a hand on his belly where the top of the cloth bearing the Novak crest rested. Together, they said a single word. “Castiel.”

The priest picked up the phoenix feather quill from where it rested atop the book and the name Castiel Novak was written beneath Gabriel Novak. With a kind smile he said, “May the gods guide and protect you, Castiel Novak.” The words were echoed by everyone in the room and cheers broke out as the Naming Ceremony ended and the room was filled with laughter and the sounds of people putting food on their plates.

John smiled when he felt his mate rest against his side. “I’m sorry dear, he snuck away while I was talking to lady Moseley.”

The king of Huntalon turned to his wife and kissed her forehead then said, “Don’t worry about it love. So, what do you say we go and meet our godson properly?"

Together, the Winchester couple made their way to the front of the room where the Novaks were still kneeling with their son. Young Michael had joined them and was gazing down curiously at his newly named brother while Gabriel could be heard all the way across the room, loudly demanding that the cake be cut immediately, and no, he didn’t want chicken, he wanted cake!

Once they reached their friends, they knelt on the pelt with them and exchanged smiles and blessings. Looking down at Dean who was sat on his lap, John noticed that he was _still_ staring at little Castiel. He looked up at Rebecca and saw her looking back at him. She smiled at him and made little ‘go on’ gesture towards her small son. John bent down towards his son and said, “His name is Castiel. Would you like to meet him now, Dean?”

With a gasp, Dean looked up at his father and exclaimed, “Yes!” before he started bouncing in place excitedly, prompting laughter from everyone watching.

Gently, John set the young alpha down on the pelt and held him back long enough to say, “You have to be gentle Dean, he’s very small.” Of course, it turned out he didn’t have anything to worry about. For all the excitement he’d displayed at the prospect of meeting the baby, Dean inched towards him very slowly and the touch he laid on his cheek was so gentle it was almost reverent.

And at that moment, when the tip of the alpha’s fingers touched the omega’s cheeks, cries of surprise and wonder could be heard from all of those looking upon the scene. As silence fell over the room and crimson eyes looked down into golden ones, Dean decided that he would always protect his baby, his Castiel, no matter what.

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotta say, when I started writing this chapter, I didn't expect it to have over 4k words. I tried my best to portray the behaviors a 2 year old may have, I hope I did it justice.
> 
> I'll be happy for any support or constructive criticism on this fic. As I said, it's my first proper one and I have pretty big plans for it. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)


	3. Shades In The Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, a fair warning, last chapter was pure fluff. This gets pretty dark. If you get triggered by graphic depictions of very severe burns you may want to skip this chapter or even this story as it will be mentioned/described at least a few times in the story (not every chapter, but still). If you do want to skip the graphic depictions, stop at "Liar" and resume after the page break.
> 
> I'll be updating the tags as I go. If you feel like a part of the story will be triggering to you, but you still want to read it, I'll be more than happy to provide you with a toned down recap of the offending chapter.

Despite it being the end of winter, it was a fairly warm day in Huntalon. The last of the snow had melted away weeks ago and with spring approaching, the birds were finally starting to come out of hiding to share their songs with the citizens of the Kingdom. All was calm in the Lawrence Castle's courtyard until a shriek sounded across the grounds. Every guard in the vicinity tensed for a moment before their gazes fell upon the two pups lying in a pile of tangled limbs on the ground. The two boys were play wrestling on a patch of grass near the courtyard’s fountain and one glance at their smiling faces was enough to confirm that the shriek had been a joyful one.

Four year old Castiel Novak giggled as his best friend and future mate pinned him to the ground with triumphant grin. “Deeeeeean! Get off me!” the younger prince’s words were huffed out between fits of laughter and the older boy shook his head as his mischievous grin grew larger.

“No can do, Cas! You didn’t say please!” exclaimed Dean as the omega started squirming to dislodge the young alpha from on top of him. Castiel scowled at him then and Dean felt a surge of fond affection swell in his chest. Cas was adorable every hour of the day, but he was extra adorable when he tried to look all wrathful. Especially when his so-called anger was betrayed by a lingering smile on his lips.

As if sensing that his righteous anger wasn’t being taken seriously, Castiel huffed and shot the older prince a glare that may have been very lethal had it not looked so ridiculously cute on him. Dean laughed at the sight and finally took mercy on the other boy. Releasing his future mate’s shoulders, he jumped up to his feet and offered his hand to the blue-eyed boy. Once they were both standing, the Winchester prince used his grip on Cas’ hand to draw him into a hug. “I’m really gonna miss you Cas” he said as he buried his face in the other boy’s neck and basked in that wonderful scent that always made him feel happy and calm. His Cas smelled like honey and apples.

Returning the Alpha’s hug, Castiel said “I’m really gonna miss you too, Dee. I wish I could be with you all the time”.

The older boy let out a sad sigh and pulled back to look the omega in the eyes as he spoke “Me too, Cas. I wish you didn’t have to go home at the end of the winter”.

Looking down to the ground, the Novak prince let out a sad sigh as he exclaimed “It’s not fair! Mama says that mates should be together always, and everyone says we’re True Mates and that it’s really special so why…” he trailed off as tears threatened to spill from his eyes.

Alarmed by the sight of his omega’s tears, the young alpha raised his hands to the other child’s face to wipe them away and pressed their foreheads together as he said “It won’t be for long Cas… I’ll be at Castle Novak with you for the whole summer remember? I’ll be right there with you when you get your crest.”

Still looking down, the younger boy whispered lowly “Liar”.

Confused by the odd response, Dean frowned and said “Why would you say that? Of course I’ll there Cas!”

Castiel started shaking as an eerie laughter erupted from him. The omega pushed him away with enough strength to send him to the ground. “But you weren’t there Dean! _I needed you and you and you weren’t there_.”

The birds were no longer singing and there was not a guard in sight. The courtyard that had seemed so vibrant only moments before now seemed devoid of life and the inviting late winter warmth had become a bone deep chill. With a mounting sense of dread, little Dean Winchester hanged his head and shut his eyes tight. Somehow, he knew that if he looked up, it wouldn’t be his Cas looking back at him.

The ‘Not Cas’ started walking towards him and the sound of its steps was deafening in the silence of the courtyard. “Look at me” the thing said, “Look at what you did to me”. Dean stiffened as the thing slowly dropped to it’s knees in front of him and placed a bony hand on his leg. It leaned forward until the alpha could feel it’s breath on his face and the all too familiar smell of charred flesh invaded his senses. “LOOK AT ME” it yelled.

The Winchester prince whimpered as his eyelids fluttered, his eyes opening against his will. The sight before him tore a bloodcurdling scream from him as his gaze rested upon the creature in front of him. The thing that was talking with his little mate’s voice. The thing’s charred flesh was barely hanging onto its bones, its eye sockets were empty and the absence of flesh where its lips had burned off revealed a sinister grin. The worst part of the vision though, was the darkened pendant dangling from the thing’s neck. With a cackle, the thing rested its forehead against Dean’s in a cruel mockery of the alpha’s earlier gesture. “You promised you would protect me no matter what” it said as the boy started sobbing. “But you didn’t. You weren’t there, you didn’t protect me, _and they burned me alive_ ”.

Overwhelmed with grief and horror, the alpha started pleading with the thing “Please, Cas. I’m so-“ but was interrupted by the thing’s hand rising from his leg to wrap viciously around his neck, cutting off his airway.

“You’re the one who should have burned”

 

* * *

 

 

Dean Winchester jerked upright in the bed, gasping for air. He raised a hand and rubbed at his throat. He would have sworn he could still feel that cold, unforgiving hand wrapped around his neck. He scoffed at the ridiculousness of the thought and rose to his feet, rubbing the tears out of his eyes. It wasn’t the first time a fond memory of his time with Cas was darkened by his nightmares and it wouldn’t be the last. Gods, had it really been sixteen years already? He would never forget the day they finally brought Cas home after weeks of turning Enoch upside down to find him. It was raining that day. As if the heavens themselves were weeping. They’d tried to keep Dean away, to keep him from seeing. But he saw. Gods, he saw. Had it not been for the darkened blue gem pendant hanging from the frail, charred corpse’s neck, the Winchester prince wouldn’t have been able to believe that that thing could be his sweet, adorable Cas.

Dean took a shuddering breath and shook his head to free himself of the disturbing images. Wallowing in self pity wouldn’t change anything. Walking over to the bucket of water resting on the table across the room, the alpha picked up the cloth laid out next to it and proceeded to wash away to sweat brought on by the night’s horrors. With that task accomplished, he quickly dressed himself and gathered his things before heading out of the rented room. He had no doubt Sam was already waiting for him downstairs at the inn’s bar. He only hoped that he hadn’t been screaming in his sleep this time. He wasn’t in the mood to put up with Sam’s pitying looks all damn morning again.

They would have a quick breakfast and then they would be on their way. Dean had a job to do and he would get it done if it was the last thing he did. He would find them. _All_ of them. Everyone that had had even the slightest involvement in Cas’ death would pay. Dean Winchester would make sure of that.

 

* * *

 

 

Sitting upon an old stone throne, a woman was looking down into a seemingly shallow bowl of black water. She wore a cruel smile on her face as she watched a vision of her Shade’s work in the dark depths.

“You’re the one who should have burned” it said before finally releasing its hold on the prince’s mind. The vision in the water faded as the man woke. Oh, how she wished she could see the aftermath of her pet’s little… Interventions. Unfortunately, she had no power over the man in his waking moments. Of course, it didn’t matter in the end. Soon his mind would break and the future King of Huntalon would be theirs to play with.

The woman looked up as the echoes of footsteps announced the arrival of her associate. “Well?” he asked harshly, “Is it done yet?”.

Looking up at him, she shook her head and put on a placating smile, in hopes of calming his temper. “Not quite yet, but soon” she said, “We can’t rush these things, Sire, if he realizes the Shade’s presence, it’s over. I promise you I am working as fast as I can”.

“Well, then…” he said as he walked up to her. Faster than she could have reacted, he grabbed her by the hair and dragged her off the throne holding her face in front of his deformed one.

“Work faster, witch”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok! There it is. I'm very sorry for the much longer than intended wait, but things have been pretty hectic lately. It shouldn't take this long next time.
> 
> You might also notice that this chapter is much shorter than the previous one. I can't really say what will be the standard length of the chapters. I kind of just write and stop when it feels like the right place to end. 
> 
> Sorry if the fluff of the first chapter clashing with the dark of the second chapter gives you whiplash. I know it's a complete 180 and yes, it was intentional. Spoiler alert though, this DOES have a happy ending. Eventually. 
> 
> Constructive criticism is welcome, this is my first published work and I'm happy for any advice that can improve the quality of this fic.


	4. Map Of The World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This isn't a chapter (sorry)
> 
> Since the characters in the story are going to be traveling quite a bit and sometimes be apart, I decided to make a map to make it easier to follow along and remember where everyone is. I was thinking I could put it at the end of each chapter with the characters' current locations. I would also be adding the names of the locations on the map as the characters discover them or as they are referenced in the story. If that's not something people are interested in having, I'll simply move this map to the prologue with the history lesson and leave it there for reference. Feel free to give your thoughts/opinions on the matter.

Can't post without any words I think, so let me sing you the song of my people ... Oh look, enough characters! You lucky souls, you!


End file.
